lightning

[ lahyt-ning ]

/ ˈlaɪt nɪŋ /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR lightning ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a brilliant electric spark discharge in the atmosphere, occurring within a thundercloud, between clouds, or between a cloud and the ground.

verb (used without object), light·ninged, light·ning.

to emit a flash or flashes of lightning (often used impersonally with it as subject): If it starts to lightning, we'd better go inside.

adjective

of, relating to, or resembling lightning, especially in regard to speed of movement: lightning flashes; lightning speed.

Origin of lightning

1350–1400; Middle English, variant of lightening.See lighten¹, -ing¹

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH lightning

lightening, lightning

Words nearby lightning

light mill, light-minded, light mineral, light music, lightness, lightning, lightning arrester, lightning bug, lightning chess, lightning conductor, Lightning never strikes twice in the same place

Dictionary.com UnabridgedBased on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for lightning

Should lightning strike and Hillary Clinton forgoes a presidential run, Democrats have a nominee in waiting.
Sen. Warren’s Main Street Crusade to Pressure Clinton|Eleanor Clift|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Second, Michelle served as a lightning rod in the sense of drawing attacks away from other reform groups.
A Letter of Thanks to Michelle Rhee|Dmitri Mehlhorn|August 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
There were flashes of lightning outside and the rumble of thunder.
The Gentle Giant Cut Down by Cops|Michael Daly|July 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Improvements in lightning tracking help scientists know where to send aircraft to look for fires.
Fighting Wildfire With Satellites, Lasers, and Drones|Elizabeth Lopatto|July 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Setting up the company “came to me as a lightning bolt last summer,” Lear tells me.
Adventures in Gay History With Oscar Wilde|Tim Teeman|June 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Diamond had not seen the lightning, for he had been intent on finding the face of North Wind.
At the Back of the North Wind|George MacDonald
The Prophet rose and rushed at her; but Sarah, with the quickness of lightning, flew between them.
The Black Prophet: A Tale Of Irish Famine|William Carleton
The knight sprang round the horse as quick as lightning, and, brandishing his sword, struck at Kuhleborn's head.
Undine|Friedrich de la Motte Fouque
On the 24th, at night, we saw the first lightning, which was not very bright.
The Voyages of Pedro Fernandez de Quiros|Pedro Fernandez de Quiros
Red Blaze, quick as lightning, fired at the flash of the rifle.
The Guns of Shiloh|Joseph A. Altsheler

British Dictionary definitions for lightning

lightning

/ (ˈlaɪtnɪŋ) /

noun

a flash of light in the sky, occurring during a thunderstorm and caused by a discharge of electricity, either between clouds or between a cloud and the earthRelated adjectives: fulgurous, fulminous

(modifier) fast and suddena lightning raid

Word Origin for lightning

C14: variant of lightening

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Idioms and Phrases with lightning

lightning

In addition to the idiom beginning with lightning

lightning never strikes twice in the same place

also see:

like greased lightning
quick as a wink (lightning)

Cultural definitions for lightning

lightning

An electrical discharge from clouds that have acquired an electrical charge, usually occurring during storms. (See thunder.)

Scientific definitions for lightning

lightning

[ līt′nĭng ]

A flash of light in the sky caused by an electrical discharge between clouds or between a cloud and the Earth's surface. The flash heats the air and usually causes thunder. Lightning may appear as a jagged streak, as a bright sheet, or in rare cases, as a glowing red ball.

A Closer Look

As storm clouds develop, the temperature at the top of the cloud becomes much cooler than that at the bottom. For reasons that scientists still do not understand, this temperature difference results in the accumulation of negatively charged particles near the base and positively charged particles near the top of the storm cloud. The negatively charged particles repel the electrons of atoms in nearby objects, such as the bases of other storm clouds or tall objects on the ground. Consequently, these nearby objects take on a positive charge. The difference in charge, or voltage, builds until an electric current starts to flow between the objects along a pathway of charged atoms in the air. The current flow heats up the air to such a degree that it glows, generating lightning. Initially, a bolt of lightning carrying a negative charge darts from one storm cloud to another or from a storm cloud to the ground, leaving the bottom of the cloud with a positive charge. In response, a second bolt (reverse lightning) shoots in the opposite direction (from the other storm cloud or the ground) as the mass of negative charges on it moves back to neutralize the positive charge on the bottom of the first cloud. The heat generated by the lightning causes the air to expand, in turn creating very large sound waves, or thunder.

单词	lightning
释义	lightning [ lahyt-ning ] / ˈlaɪt nɪŋ / SEE SYNONYMS FOR lightning ON THESAURUS.COM noun a brilliant electric spark discharge in the atmosphere, occurring within a thundercloud, between clouds, or between a cloud and the ground. verb (used without object), light·ninged, light·ning. to emit a flash or flashes of lightning (often used impersonally with it as subject): If it starts to lightning, we'd better go inside. adjective of, relating to, or resembling lightning, especially in regard to speed of movement: lightning flashes; lightning speed. Origin of lightning 1350–1400; Middle English, variant of lightening.See lighten¹, -ing¹ WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH lightning lightening, lightning Words nearby lightning light mill, light-minded, light mineral, light music, lightness, lightning, lightning arrester, lightning bug, lightning chess, lightning conductor, Lightning never strikes twice in the same place Dictionary.com UnabridgedBased on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020 Example sentences from the Web for lightning Should lightning strike and Hillary Clinton forgoes a presidential run, Democrats have a nominee in waiting. Sen. Warren’s Main Street Crusade to Pressure Clinton\|Eleanor Clift\|January 8, 2015\|DAILY BEAST Second, Michelle served as a lightning rod in the sense of drawing attacks away from other reform groups. A Letter of Thanks to Michelle Rhee\|Dmitri Mehlhorn\|August 16, 2014\|DAILY BEAST There were flashes of lightning outside and the rumble of thunder. The Gentle Giant Cut Down by Cops\|Michael Daly\|July 24, 2014\|DAILY BEAST Improvements in lightning tracking help scientists know where to send aircraft to look for fires. Fighting Wildfire With Satellites, Lasers, and Drones\|Elizabeth Lopatto\|July 9, 2014\|DAILY BEAST Setting up the company “came to me as a lightning bolt last summer,” Lear tells me. Adventures in Gay History With Oscar Wilde\|Tim Teeman\|June 11, 2014\|DAILY BEAST Diamond had not seen the lightning, for he had been intent on finding the face of North Wind. At the Back of the North Wind\|George MacDonald The Prophet rose and rushed at her; but Sarah, with the quickness of lightning, flew between them. The Black Prophet: A Tale Of Irish Famine\|William Carleton The knight sprang round the horse as quick as lightning, and, brandishing his sword, struck at Kuhleborn's head. Undine\|Friedrich de la Motte Fouque On the 24th, at night, we saw the first lightning, which was not very bright. The Voyages of Pedro Fernandez de Quiros\|Pedro Fernandez de Quiros Red Blaze, quick as lightning, fired at the flash of the rifle. The Guns of Shiloh\|Joseph A. Altsheler British Dictionary definitions for lightning lightning / (ˈlaɪtnɪŋ) / noun a flash of light in the sky, occurring during a thunderstorm and caused by a discharge of electricity, either between clouds or between a cloud and the earthRelated adjectives: fulgurous, fulminous (modifier) fast and suddena lightning raid Word Origin for lightning C14: variant of lightening Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012 Idioms and Phrases with lightning lightning In addition to the idiom beginning with lightning lightning never strikes twice in the same place also see: like greased lightning quick as a wink (lightning) The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Words related to lightning fulmination, bolt Cultural definitions for lightning lightning An electrical discharge from clouds that have acquired an electrical charge, usually occurring during storms. (See thunder.) The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved. Scientific definitions for lightning lightning [ līt′nĭng ] A flash of light in the sky caused by an electrical discharge between clouds or between a cloud and the Earth's surface. The flash heats the air and usually causes thunder. Lightning may appear as a jagged streak, as a bright sheet, or in rare cases, as a glowing red ball. A Closer Look As storm clouds develop, the temperature at the top of the cloud becomes much cooler than that at the bottom. For reasons that scientists still do not understand, this temperature difference results in the accumulation of negatively charged particles near the base and positively charged particles near the top of the storm cloud. The negatively charged particles repel the electrons of atoms in nearby objects, such as the bases of other storm clouds or tall objects on the ground. Consequently, these nearby objects take on a positive charge. The difference in charge, or voltage, builds until an electric current starts to flow between the objects along a pathway of charged atoms in the air. The current flow heats up the air to such a degree that it glows, generating lightning. Initially, a bolt of lightning carrying a negative charge darts from one storm cloud to another or from a storm cloud to the ground, leaving the bottom of the cloud with a positive charge. In response, a second bolt (reverse lightning) shoots in the opposite direction (from the other storm cloud or the ground) as the mass of negative charges on it moves back to neutralize the positive charge on the bottom of the first cloud. The heat generated by the lightning causes the air to expand, in turn creating very large sound waves, or thunder. The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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lightning

noun

verb (used without object), light·ninged, light·ning.

adjective

Origin of lightning

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH lightning

Words nearby lightning

Example sentences from the Web for lightning

British Dictionary definitions for lightning

noun

Word Origin for lightning

Idioms and Phrases with lightning

Words related to lightning

Cultural definitions for lightning

Scientific definitions for lightning

A Closer Look